Illustration by Tony Tye and Curt Chandler, Post-Gazette TV Editor Rob Owen goes behind the scenes of the Television Critics Association summer press tour in Los Angeles with this journal, written exclusively for post-gazette.com. Click photo for larger image. Past Press Tours Index to Press Tour journals

If you're seeing that intentionally cheesy picture of me in shades, you know it's time for my semi-annual trip to Los Angeles for the television critics press tour. After a 4 a.m. ET wake-up in Pittsburgh, I arrived at The Beverly Hilton, site of this summer's TCA, by 11 a.m. PT.

By mid-afternoon, PBS presented a panel of Hollywood legends -- Carl Reiner, Red Buttons, Mickey Rooney, Sid Caesar, Rose Marie -- who are all interviewed in "Pioneers of Primetime," a special airing in November.

Mickey Rooney was, um, a fairly incomprehensible spotlight hog, answering questions he wasn't asked and not always making a lot of sense. Even Carl Reiner stopped him when he answered a question directed at another panelist, saying, "Mickey, you're not Sid Caesar!"

Later in the press conference, Rooney was ready to take on another question.

"Can I answer that?" he said.

"I would be surprised if you didn't," Reiner replied.

After a monologue that veered from Rooney stating that the film studios were founded by Jews, Rooney proclaimed his old stomping ground, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, was "the Tiffany of the studios in Hollywood."

Most of the panelists were laughing at Rooney by this point, and Red Buttons said he'd seen all of Rooney's MGM pictures, including "Andy Hardy and the Hasidic Housewife" and "Andy Hardy [Has Sex With] Lassie."

But Rooney was oblivious, seemingly unaware that he was dragging down the panel.

"I'm not here to talk about the things I do," Rooney said.

"Sure you are," countered Buttons.

Then Rooney introduced his wife sitting in the audience, to which Buttons added, "And let me introduce your mistress, too. I think it would be a nice gesture."

Just a few minutes later, Rooney segued to singing "Yankee Doodle Dandy," and the rest of the panel joined the chorus.

"I was a young girl when this panel started," Rose Marie said, feigning exasperation in that way that makes you think she really was exasperated. She was not alone.

But it all ended on an upbeat note.

"Mickey Rooney should be forgiven his madness up here today," Reiner said, graciously, "because he's a genius performer."